MALIBU, Calif. - Despite 10 kills out of sophomore Josh Taylor, the #4 Pepperdine men's volleyball team could not overcome #7-ranked UCLA and fell 3-0. It was the Waves' first loss at home in 2013.

The Bruins (11-8, 7-6 MPSF), who won by set scores of 25-18, 25-17, 25-18, kept the Waves off balance with stellar serving and tallied 10 aces in the match. Gonzalo Quiroga accounted for six of those aces and paced UCLA's defense with seven digs.

Pepperdine (8-5, 8-5 MPSF) struggled to put the ball away, and although it hit at a respectable .217 (25-12-60) clip, UCLA made the most of its 67 attack attempts with 40 kills. At the end of the night, the Bruins were credited with a .493 (40-7-67) hitting percentage - the highest success rate allowed by the Waves this season.

Dane Worley led the match with 11 kills while hitting .500 (11-1-20).

The Waves struggled to get the momentum going and did not hold a commanding lead until the third set, when they went up 10-6 following a Taylor kill. Still up 11-8, Quiroga put the Bruins within striking distance after delivering two-consecutive aces, but a timeout disrupted his serving rhythm and the outside hitter committed an error at the line to give Pepperdine the sideout.

Unfortunately for the Waves, the team was unable to hold onto the advantage and the Bruins knotted the score up at 14. Although a Taylor kill put Pepperdine back on top, another UCLA ace sparked a 3-0 run to tip the scales in its favor once and for all. An 8-2 run - highlighted by two more Quiroga aces - put the set away 25-18 to clinch the sweep.

Matt West (Seattle, Wash./Shorewood HS) dished 23 assists in the contest, while Ryan Plueger (Los Angeles, Calif./Harvard-Westlake) picked up six digs to pace the Waves.

Pepperdine looks to get back on track next week, when they head up to the Pacific Northwest to take on Pacific (March 1) and Stanford (March 2). The Waves defeated both opponents at home back in January.